by STEPHANIE PAPPAS
Common sense is no replacement for science; plenty of “everyone knows” knowledge has had its legs cut out from under it by a well-designed study. Nevertheless, some research turns up results that don’t exactly shock and awe.
Such no-duh research usually has a serious underlying purpose, from the study of why people cheat to the roots of racism. Researchers have to understand the basics of everyday phenomena in order to understand them, after all.
Here’s a sampling of the unsurprising research of 2013 — with a few notes on why scientists bothered.
1. The Western diet is bad for you
Wait … fried Snickers bars and hot dogs aren’t the foundations of a well-balanced diet? The “Western diet” of processed and fried foods with a side of sweets and red meat increases the likelihood of premature death, researchers reported in April in The American Journal of Medicine, to the surprise of no one.
The study was slightly different than other research into how Twinkies can kill, in that it assessed overall health in old age rather that the effect of diet on specific diseases. [7 Foods You Can Overdose On]
…
11. Reality TV skews reality
In a year wrapping up with a controversy over anti-gay comments made by the patriarch on the A&E reality TV show “Duck Dynasty,” it seems appropriate that scientists observed a not-so-surprising pattern this October. Young adults who watch reality TV are likely to believe the shows reflect, well, reality. Reality TV viewers are more likely than non-viewers to think women are nasty gossips and that fighting in relationships is common, researchers reported in the journal Psychology of Popular Media Culture.
…
13. Women find musicians hot
Many an adolescent boy has taken up guitar in hopes of getting chicks. It’s not a bad strategy, according to research published May 1 in the journal Psychology of Music. This absolutely delightful study had a man ask women on the street for their phone numbers while holding either a sports bag, a guitar case or nothing. The guy got more digits when holding the guitar case. Rock on.
Scientific American for more